A fire in a shopping centre in the capital of Qatar has killed at least 19 people, including 13 children, according to authorities in the Gulf state.

The fire at the Villaggio centre in Doha was extinguished an hour after thick black smoke was seen pouring from the building at about midday on Monday.

The dead included four teachers and two civil defence officials. Most of the 17 people who were injured were rescue workers, said Qatar's interior ministry.

Al Jazeera TV reported that firefighters had to go through the roof of the centre to get to a nursery where children were said to have been trapped.

The TV station, which is based in Doha, also reported that the nationalities of the children in the nursery included Japanese, Spanish, Filipino, South African as well as some from European and Arab states. Three of the teachers were said to have been Filipino and one was African.

"There don't seem to have been any fire alarms or sprinklers at the mall," a relative of one of the victims told Reuters.

The centre, an Italianate-themed complex which encompasses a cinema, hotel and canals with gondolas, opened in 2006 and is one of the most popular shopping and recreational complexes in Qatar, which will host football's 2022 World Cup tournament.